Category: Ariana’s Posts

  • Autism In The Community: When RFK Jr Talks His Way Into Autism Awareness Month, This Is What I Think You Should Know

    Perhaps you’ve heard something about RFK Jr’s comments about autism recently, or you listened to it. Or you saw his follow up comments to Fox News that were posted on his Instagram. Hot off of paying our taxes all by myself as I have for more than 2 decades, deciding whether or not to file…

  • April Gratitude & Some Reading And Viewing

    To Tony My sweet Tony, I know impulse control is something you have to fight to improve every day. For you to remember without mistakes the kind of things you couldn’t do around me when I was recovering was a feat that many might not recognize, but I do. I know you don’t speak often…

  • Arizona Legislators: Are You Pro-Life?

    Many legislators in our state proudly tout their pro-life support. This week, as letters were being read about the lives of disabled community members during a legislative session, some of our legislators walked out without listening, ultimately blocking a bill from being passed that would have resolved budget shortfalls to disability services in this state.…

  • “Put Out?” No.

    Just a change in app functionality can show a different picture. What my son’s letter tracing looks like for words without the app correcting the lines for him as he seeks to improve his motor planning and fine motor skills. Photos by Ariana Our son has now been without PT or OT services for two…

  • Mismanagement Probably Not: A Second Open Letter Regarding Arizona DDD/ALTCS Funding Shortages

    To our Arizona State Legislature and Governor Hobbs: I have read that some in our legislature have blamed the governor for mismanagement of DDD funds. And to Representative David Livingston and all of the other esteemed members of our state’s appropriations committee, I would like to propose considering that another explanation is quite possible to…

  • Regarding Proposed Cuts To Services for the Developmentally Disabled in Arizona

    An Open Letter to Governor Hobbs, the Arizona State Legislature, and each of you: In this house, my kiddo has now been without PT and OT for more than a month as the situation I wrote about in my last post remains an active and unresolved matter. So in what would have been an OT…

  • Just Like That UMR Happened…

    Bear with me, that title is going to make sense in a few paragraphs. On December 16th, 2024, I met with an orthopedic spine surgeon to discuss my MRI findings and a proposed surgery. He felt that waiting any longer than necessary to do the surgery increased my risk of permanent deficits, specifically he mentioned…

  • Two Autistics Walked In…

    This is a lower resolution screenshot taken from a brief summary video I was able to download from my MRI in October. What is shown here, according to the surgeon who is treating me, is one of my disks which has slipped behind a vertebrae. And what you are seeing is a picture of what…

  • November Gratitude & Some Reading/Viewing

    Miss Emily Somehow even when I know the way time can slip through the fingers and the mind, I still struggle to math that there have been enough days to add up to nearly 9 years now that we’ve known each other. From Tony’s second music therapist to one of my closest friends, you will…

  • “But Wait, There’s More…”

    If only it were going to come with the “low, low price of just $19.95.” OK, so you can totally tell I saw a few too many infomercials in the ’80’s. I wish I could say some of this came as a complete surprise, but it didn’t. My foot slipped carrying an air purifier down…